Steam and vacuum controller for the buck of a garment press

ABSTRACT

An improved steam and vacuum controller for the buck of a garment press which substantially baffles the apertures in a buck plate at the wide end of the buck plate against the passage of steam from the buck chamber outwardly thereof and against the drawing of vacuum inwardly of the buck chamber at the wide end portion of the buck.

United States Patent Inventor Joseph Airdo Skokie,ll1.

Mar. 11, 1970 June 29, 1971 Bishop Freeman Company Evanston, 111.

Appl No Filed Patented Assignee STEAM AND VACUUM CONTROLLER FOR THE BUCK OF A GARMENT PRESS 7 Claims, 8 Drawing Figs.

US. Cl

Int. Cl Field ofSearch 38/l5-l7,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,160,013 5/1939 Burnstein 38/15 2,701,926 2/1955 Meyer 38/16 3,505,743 4/1970 Radford et a1. 38/15 X Primary Examiner.lordan Franklin Assistant ExaminerGeo. V, Larkin Att0rneyDressler, Goldsmith, Clement and Gordon ABSTRACT: An improved steam and vacuum controller for the buck of a garment press which substantially baffles the apertures in a buck plate at the wide end of the buck plate against the passage of steam from the buck chamber outwardly thereof and against the drawing of vacuum inwardly of the buck chamber at the wide end portion of the buck.

STEAM AND VACUUM CONTROLLER FOR THE BUCK OF A GARMENT PRESS This invention relates to a steam and vacuum diverter and controller assembly for use with the buck of a garment press.

For years garment presses have embodied bucks which are generally uniformly aperturcd throughout their entire lengths. The apertures are provided to permit the escape of steam upwardly through a buck cover and into a garment to be pressed. Vacuum is drawn through the apertures, after pressing, to remove the steam and moisture.

Pressers, in their day-to-day use of a garment press, use most frequently only the narrow portion of the buck. Even when the entire buck is used to press a garment, frequently steaming is desired largely at the narrower portion. However, because bucks are constructed with fully aperturcd surfaces from the narrow end to the wide end, steam escapes in a uniform blanket along the entire length of the buck. This results in the steaming of areas in which no portion of a garment is present, subsequently requiring vacuuming in those areas where vacuuming ought not to be necessary, slowing the pressing process appreciably.

In accordance with this invention, improved means are pro vided for substantially shutting off the escape of steam from the least used portion of the buck, i.e., the wide portion. The improved device for that purpose includes a diverter plate which is movable, as desired by a presser, between a first extreme position in which the escape of steam is substantially completely blocked at the wide portion of the buck, to a second extreme position in which the rate of escape of steam from the buck through an associated buck cover is substantially uniform along the entire length of the buck. The im provements of this invention provide functional and constructional advantages over related devices, such as that illustrated in Italian Industrial Model US Pat. No. 130,260, and such as full buck covering devices sold in Italy for generally similar purposes.

In accordance with this invention, the improved diverter assembly comprises, in one embodiment, a platelike assembly which substantially conforms to the wide end portion of the buck, and which covers slightly less than about 50 percent of the aperturcd buck surface at the wide end portion. The diverter assembly includes an apertured top or steam plate which is fixed to the buck itself, as by a plurality of clips, and an aperturcd diverter plate slidably secured to the undersurface of the top plate. The diverter plate is movable between a first position in which the apertures of the top plate are substantially fully blocked and a second position in which the apertures of the top plate are fully open and aligned with the diverter plate apertures to provide communication between the buck plate apertures, hence the buck steam chamber, and the top surface of the top plate. To assure the passage of steam from the buck steam chamber, means are provided for spacing the diverter plate slightly above the top surface of the buck, thereby to define an auxiliary steam chamber which provides constant communication between the buck steam chamber and the lower surface of the diverter plate.

In further embodiment, an aperturcd steam diverter plate is positioned in the steam chamber and lies against and conforms to the lower surface of the aperturcd buck plate, but at the wide end of the buck plate only. Means connected to the buck plate slidably hold the diverter plate against the lower surface of said buck plate, and permit movement of the diverter plate between a first extreme position and a second extreme position. In the second extreme position the apertures in the buck plate and the diverter plate are aligned to permit the escape of steam from the buck steam chamber.

Means for moving said diverter plate from the second posi' tion to the first extreme position are provided. In the first ex treme position the apertures of the buck plate and diverter plate are out of line, and therefore substantially prevent the flow of steam from the buck steam chamber to the outer sur- Sealing means are provided to prevent the escape of steam except through the steam apertures, and means are provided to adjust to substantially zero, the amount of steam escaping from the buck chamber upwardly to the garment pressing surface usually a buck pad, at the wide end portion of the buck.

Further advantages and objects of this invention will appear from the following description and drawings of which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a garment press provided with a diverter assembly ofa first embodiment of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken substantially along the line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 2a is an enlarged view ofa portion of FIG. 2;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken substantially along line 33 ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view corresponding to FIG. 3 with the diverter assembly shown in a full closed position;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary bottom view of the diverter assembly of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary view of a further embodiment of a diverter assembly of this invention; and

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary view of the embodiment of FIG. 6 viewed from the wide end of the garment press.

Referring first to FIG. 1, a conventional press P comprises a head H and a buck B. Buck B may be any conventional buck comprising a buck casting l0 and a connected buck plate 12 securely connected thereto as by threaded bolts 14. Buck plate 12 defines a plurality of uniformly spaced apertures 16 through which steam may pass upwardly and through which vacuum may be drawn inwardly and downwardly.

Steam is supplied in a conventional manner to the buck steam chamber 18 defined by the buck casting l0 and buck plate 12 by a steam supply conduit .20. Similarly vacuum is drawn, after steaming and pressing, from the steam chamber 18 through a vacuum conduit 22.

In accordance with this invention, a steam diverter assembly 30 is provided for limiting the flow of steam from chamber 18 through buck plate 12. To this end, the wider end portion of the buck B is fitted with the diverter assembly 30 which overlies the buck plate 12.

Diverter assembly 30 comprises a diverter plate 32 and a steam plate 34. Steam plate 34 defines a plurality of openings 36 through which steam may pass outwardly and upwardly and through which vacuum may be drawn inwardly. Plate 34 is removably secured to the buck B as by a plurality of bendable clip elements which may be integral extensions of plate 34, which may be clips welded or brazed to the plate 34, or which may be, as shown in the drawings, clip elements 38 which are secured to generally horseshoe-shaped peripheral strip means 40 to which plate 34 is secured. Clip elements 38 are formed at opposite ends of a band 42 which band is connected as by welding to plate 34 at the forward ends of the generally horseshoe-shaped retainer strip means 40.

As best seen in FIG. 2, clips 38 and 38' are bent to a generally U-shaped configuration to underlie, at their ends, the lip 44 of buck casting 10, thereby to securely and firmly attach the steam plate 34 to the buck B.

The diverter assembly 30 is intended to be secured to a variety of manufacturers models of presses, hence the clips 38 and 38' are manufactured in an open position or in partially bent position, the user bending them to the position of FIG. 2 (such as from the phantom position of FIG. 2) to conform to the particular manufacturers buck.

The diverter plate 32 is positioned between buck plate 12 and steam plate 34. Diverter plate 32 is perforated and defines a plurality of apertures 50 which are positioned to be vertically aligned with openings 36 in steam plate 34. Diverter plate 32 is adapted to be moved between a position in which openings 36 and apertures 50 are aligned (FIGS. 2 and 4), and a position in which they are out of line, diverter plate 32 baffling openings 36. Diverter plate 32 is also movable intermediate those extreme positions to partially baffle openings 36.

Desirably diverter plate 32 snuggly fits against the lower surface of the steam plate 34 to minimize escape of steam, when it is in its baffling positions. Desirably, to assist it in its sliding movement, it is coated with a lubric material, such as polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon) on both major surfaces. However, because steaming is only intermittent and then for limited periods only, such as 2 or 3 seconds, or the like, a tight sliding fit is not absolutely essential to substantially accomplish the desired baffling. Diverter plate 32 is maintained in its position against the lower surface of steam plate 34 by the peripheral retaine: strip 40 which is secured to the lower sur' face of plate 34 and which as seen in FIG. 2, is shaped to define a slideway for the diverter plate.

Preferably diverter plate 32 is spaced slightly above the apertured surface of buck plate 12 (See FIGS. 24). The purpose of that is to provide a secondary chamber 60 which steam from chamber 1? enters through buck plate apertures 16. This is particularly important because the apertures 16 in buck plates of different manufacturers are not identically spaced, and also because aligning of such apertures with those in plates 32 and 34 would be exceedingly difficult. If diverter plate 32 closed off apertures 16, steam could not escape, nor could vacuum be drawn.

Retainer strip 40 spaces plate 32 from the confronting face of buck plate 12. The inner edge 62 extends below the lower surface of plate 3.2 and rests against buck B, or against, in the embodiment illustrated, an intermediate insulating and barrier layer 64. Layer 64 is a strip of insulating material, such as asbestos 66 lined with, and laminated to aluminum foil 68. The foil side of layer 64 is adhered to retainer strip 40 and projects outwardly therefrom, over the lip 44 of casting l and down and thereunder. The foil, when bent, tends to keep the strip in place. The layer 64 is held firmly in place in the vicinity of clips 38, 38 (See FIG. 2). However, apart from the clips, the main means for holding the layer 64 in its wrapped relationship to the buck is the buck pad (not shown) which fits over the buck and diverter plate assembly. A suitable buck pad which will so function as by the use of draw cords is illustrated and described in US. Pat. No. 2,814,135. The aluminum foil serves as a barrier to prevent the escape of steam outwardly of the buck, and the asbestos serves to insulate the edge of the buck The double headed arrow A in FIG. 1 indicates the direction in which diverter plate 32 is movable, i.e., in the direction of the length of the buck. The platess movement between a full open and a full baffling position is controlled by a lever 70 to which one end 73 ofa wire 72 is connected. Wire 72 is enclosed in a protective sheath 75. The other end 71 of wire 72 is connected to a tab 74, tab 74 being secured to plate 32 and extending outwardly through cutouts in strip 40 and layer 64. The ends 71, 73 of the cable are securely anchored, as to brackets 80 and 82, each respectively being connected to a fixed member such as table T and plate 34, respectively, and as such a push or pull on wire 72, via crank lever 70, will move plate 32 between the extreme positions of FIGS. 3 and 4, respectively.

To guide that movement, and to assist in slidably securing plates 32 and 34 in their contacting positions, adjacent the longitudinal ends 0. plate 32, and centrally thereof, plate 32 defines slot means such as a pair of slots 90. A fastener means such as a rivet 92 having an enlarged head passes through each slot 90, the ends of the rivets 92 remote from the heads being secured to plate 34. Slots 90 are long enough so that plate 32 may slide from the full baffling position illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, to the full open position in which apertures 50 coincide and are aligned with openings 36. It will be apparent that these guidance means supplement the guidance provided by retainer strip edge 62 and may be used even without retainer strip 40 and edge 62. In that event, because layer 64 also spaces the lower surface of diverter plate 32 from the upper surface of buck plate 12, and because the thickness oflayer 64 is sufficient, if strip 40 is omitted, and layer 64 is adhered directly to plate 34, a suitably dimensioned secondary chamber 60 will still remain.

In use, the diverter assembly of this invention desirably covers no more than about 50 percent of the length of buck plate 10. It covers the enlarged end (or wider end portion) which is the least used by the most efficient pressers. It facilitates the dispersion of steam from chamber 18 uniformly along the entire length of the buck (when in full open position) and provides varying gradations of steam distribution (and the drawing of vacuum), to substantially none, except in the area not covered by the steam diverter assembly. The latter is desirable when garments are to be pressed only at the narrow end, which is very frequently the case, and effectively increases the amount of steam provided where needed by concentrating all that is fed to chamber 18 at the narrow end of the buck. That not only speeds pressing, but also speeds drying (vacuuming), as when vacuum is drawn through a buck pad to remove moisture from the steamed areas of the garment.

Thus each pressing cycle may proceed more quickly than when the entire buck expels steam, by concentrating both the steam and the vacuum in the areas requiring steaming and vacuuming.

Also, by providing a diverter assembly that covers only fifty percent or less of the entire buck, the diverter assembly may be made relatively universal to a variety of manufacturers presses and may be made less expensively, as compared with the making of a unit which covers an entire buck. It has also been found that the diverter assembly of this invention can be made shallow enough so that the staggered intersection at the end of the diverter assembly adjoining buck plate surface does not interfere with pressing. That is because resilient buck covers, such as that referred to in the patent identified above, are thick enough effectively to accommodate the offset at the staggered intersection.

Referring now to FIGS. 6 and 7, an alternative embodiment of this invention is there shown. Those figures illustrate a buck comprising a buck casting 10 and a buck plate 12. The plate 12 is secured to the casting by bolts 14. Together plate 12 and casting l0 define a steam chamber 18. In this embodiment a diverter plate 32' is positioned within chamber 18, and at the lower surface of plate 12, the diverter plate apertures 50' being spaced identically to the buck plate apertures 16. The diverter plate 32 is shaped to conform exactly to the lower surface of the buck plate 12 and is movable between a position in which the apertures 16 and 50' are aligned (FIG. 6) and a position in which they are out of line (FIG. 7). Preferably, at least the surface of the diverter plate 32 is coated with a lubric material such as polytetrafluoroethylene.

To provide for movement between those two extreme positions, plate 38' mounts a stud member 100, to which a wire 102 is connected. Wire 102 runs through a sheath 104 and is movable to drive stud 100, hence the connected diverter plate 32 between the open position of FIG. 6 to the closed position of FIG. 7. Sheath 104 passes through an opening in the wide end of the buck casting, and is sealingly secured there by suitable nuts I08 which squeeze insulating washers into sealing engagement to prevent the escape of steam. Wire 102 is mounted at the other end to a lever assembly like that described in connection with the embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 5.

Diverter plate 32 is mounted on a plurality of rivets 112, the rivets being connected to the lower surface of the buck plate 12 at one end, the shanks extending through elongate slots 114 in the diverter plate. The rivet heads lie below the slots 114 to keep the diverter plate in slidable engagement with the lower surface of the buck plate. It will be seen that the support and guidance construction is generally like that illustrated in FIG. 5.

Whatl claim is:

1. A steam and vacuum diverter for the apertured buck of a garment press comprising a plate assembly conforming to the wide portion of a buck and being adapted to cover no more than about fifty percent of the length of the buck and at the wide end portion thereof, said plate assembly comprising an apertured steam plate and an apertured diverter plate each defining a plurality of apertures over its entire surface, means slidably securing said diverter plate against the lower surface of said steam plate, means for moving said diverter plate between a first position in which the apertures in said plates are aligned and a second position in which said apertures are out of line, and in which said diverter plate substantially prevents the flow of steam from the lower surface of said diverter plate to the upper surface of said steam plate, and means for spacing said diverter plate from a said buck to define a secondary steam chamber between the confronting lower surface of said diverter plate and the upper surface of said buck.

2. In the steam and vacuum diverter of claim 1 in which said plate assembly mounts a plurality of clips bendable to underlie the lip of a buck to removablyhold said plate assembly against a buck.

3. In the steam and vacuum diverter of claim 1 in which said spacing means comprises an insulating barrier layer secured to said plate assembly and positioned to rest against a said buck.

4. In the steam and vacuum diverter assembly of claim 3 in which said insulating barrier layer is a laminate of aluminum foil and asbestos.

5. In the steam and vacuum diverter assembly of claim 1 in which said means slidably securing comprise fastener means and slot means, said slot means comprising a plurality of elongate slots in said diverter plate and said fastener means comprise fasteners in said slots and secured to said steam plate.

6. Means for controlling the flow of steam from the buck of a garment press, comprising, a buck including a buck plate overlying a buck steam chamber, diverter plate means in said steam chamber and slidably engaging the lower surface of said buck plate over no more than about fifty percent of the length of the buck plate and at the wide end of said buck plate, means connected to said buck plate for slidably holding said diverter plate means against the lower surface of said buck plate, and for permitting movement of said diverter plate means between a first position and a second position, said buck plate and said diverter plate means defining apertures spaced to coincide in said second position and to be out of line in said first position to substantially prevent the flow of steam out of said buck steam chamber in the vicinity of the diverter plate means, and means for moving said diverter plate between said positions operably externally of said buck and passing into said buck steam chamber, and means sealingly preventing the escape of steam from said buck chamber where said moving means pass into said buck steam chamber.

7. In the apparatus of claim 6 in which said means for slidably holding comprises slots in said diverter plate means and headed fasteners extending through said slots and secured to said buck plate. 

1. A steam and vacuum diverter for the apertured buck of a garment press comprising a plate assembly conforming to the wide portion of a buck and being adapted to cover no more than about fifty percent of the length of the buck and at the wide end portion thereof, said plate assembly comprising an apertured steam plate and an apertured diverter plate each defining a plurality of apertures over its entire surface, means slidably securing said diverter plate against the lower surface of said steam plate, means for moving said diverter plate between a first position in which the apertures in said plates are aligned and a second position in which said apertures are out of line, and in which said diverter plate substantially prevents the flow of steam from the lower surface of said diverter plate to the upper surface of said steam plate, and means for spacing said diverter plate from a said buck to define a secondary steam chamber between the confronting lower surface of said diverter plate and the upper surface of said buck.
 2. In the steam and vacuum diverter of claim 1 in which said plate assembly mounts a plurality of clips bendable to underlie the lip of a buck to removably hold said plate assembly against a buck.
 3. In the steam and vacuum diverter of claim 1 in which said spacing means comprises an insulating barrier layer secured to said plate assembly and positioned to rest against a said buck.
 4. In the steam and vacuum diverter assembly of claim 3 in which said insulating barrier layer is a laminate of aluminum foil and asbestos.
 5. In the steam and vacuum diverter assembly of claim 1 in which said means slidably securing comprise fastener means and slot means, said slot means comprising a plurality of elongate slots in said diverter plate and said fastener means comprise fasteners in said slots and secured to said steam plate.
 6. Means for controlling the flow of steam from the buck of a garment press, comprising, a buck including a buck plate overlying a buck steam chamber, diverter plate means in said steam chamber and slidably engaging the lower surface of said buck plate over no more than about fifty percent of the length of the buck plate and at the wide end of said buCk plate, means connected to said buck plate for slidably holding said diverter plate means against the lower surface of said buck plate, and for permitting movement of said diverter plate means between a first position and a second position, said buck plate and said diverter plate means defining apertures spaced to coincide in said second position and to be out of line in said first position to substantially prevent the flow of steam out of said buck steam chamber in the vicinity of the diverter plate means, and means for moving said diverter plate between said positions operably externally of said buck and passing into said buck steam chamber, and means sealingly preventing the escape of steam from said buck chamber where said moving means pass into said buck steam chamber.
 7. In the apparatus of claim 6 in which said means for slidably holding comprises slots in said diverter plate means and headed fasteners extending through said slots and secured to said buck plate. 